Cap assembly for cold steeping drinks

ABSTRACT

A cap assembly includes a body, a punch assembly, a safety ring and a connector strip. The body has a cap connector, a primary tube, a cover, a drive tube and a chamber. The primary tube is formed coaxially on the cap connector and has at least one annular seal. The drive tube is mounted on the cap connector and has multiple outer pawl teeth and multiple top pawl teeth. The punch assembly includes a drive cap, a punch tube and multiple upper teeth corresponding to the top pawl teeth. The punch tube is formed coaxially on and extends down from on the drive cap, is longer than the body and presses against the at least one annular seal. The safety ring is connected to the cap connector. The connector strip is connected to the punch assembly and has multiple inner pawl teeth engaging the outer pawl teeth.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present invention relates to a cap, and more particularly to a capassembly for cold steeping drinks that can hold steeping materials andimprove sealability of the steeping materials and safety of drinks.

2. Description of the Related Art

Steeping materials such as tea leaves, dried vegetables and fruit,Chinese traditional medicine, leaven and concentrated vinegar are brewedin cold water for hours to make cold brewed drinks. Because some harmfuland bad-tasting substances dissolve in hot water when steeping materialsare steeped in hot water, cold steeped drinks taste better and arehealthier than drinks steeped in hot water.

Taking cold steeping tea as an example, because tannic acid and caffeinecause a bitter taste and are difficult to extract from tea leaves incold water, cold steeping tea results in a smooth taste and preventsdisadvantages like palpitations, stomach ulcers, insomnia and lowcalcium absorption rate caused by caffeine. Cold steeping tea is alsohelpful to reduce a person's blood pressure and uric acid because lesstheophylline is extracted. In addition, catechins like EC, EGC and EGCgextract effectively from tea leaves in cold water and have healthyeffects such as reducing free radials and cholesterol, producinganticarcinogens, antioxidants for antiaging and antibacterial agents,preventing stomach ulcers, protecting the cardiovascular system andincreasing helpful bacteria in the intestinal tract.

With reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, a conventional cap assembly for coldsteeping tea as disclosed in the applicant's prior art is mounted on amouth (61A) of a bottle (60A) and comprises a body (10A), a punchassembly (20A), a safety ring (30A) and a connector strip (50A).

The body (10A) is mounted on the mouth (61A) and has a cap connector, aprimary tube (12A), a cover (16A), a drive tube (14A) and a chamber(13A). The cap connector is screwed on an outer thread formed on themouth (61A) and has a sidewall and a shoulder. The sidewall has an upperedge, a lower edge, an inner surface and an inner thread. The innerthread is formed on the inner surface of the cap connector and screwsonto the outer thread on the mouth (61A). The shoulder is formed on andprotrudes in from the upper edge of the sidewall and 11 has an outersurface and an inner surface. The primary tube (12A) is formed on andprotrudes coaxially down from the inner surface of the shoulder and hasa distal end. The cover (16A) is mounted detachably on the distal end ofthe primary tube (12A). The drive tube (14A) is formed on and protrudescoaxially up from the outer surface of the shoulder and has an innersurface, an outer surface, a drive thread and an annular lip (144). Thedrive thread is formed on the inner surface of the drive tube (14A). Theannular lip (144) is formed on and protrudes out from the outer surfaceof the drive tube (14A). The chamber (13A) is defined in the primarytube (12A) and the drive tube (14A) above the cover (16A) and holdssteeping materials (70A).

The punch assembly (20A) is mounted on the body (10A) and comprises adrive cap (24A) and a punch tube (22A). The drive cap (24A) has a topand a sidewall. The top is circular and has an outer edge and a bottomsurface. The sidewall is formed on and protrudes down from the outeredge of the top and has a lower edge. The punch tube (22A) is formedcoaxially on and protrudes down from the bottom surface of the top, ismounted slidably in the drive tube (14A) and the primary tube (12A), islonger than the body (10A), selectively punches the cover (16A) off thedistal end of the primary tube (12A) to release the steeping materials(70) into the bottle (50) and has an outer surface and a thread. Thethread is formed on the outer surface of the punch tube (22A) and screwsinto the drive thread on the drive tube (14A).

The safety ring (30A) is connected to the cap connector, engages aflange on a bottle (60A), is removable so the cap assembly can beremoved from the bottle (60A) and has an upper edge, an inner surface, aconnector and multiple resilient teeth (32A). The connector is formed onthe upper edge of the safety ring (30A), is connected to the lower edgeof the cap connector and tears to allow the cap assembly to be removedfrom a bottle (60A). The resilient teeth (32A) are formed on andprotrude in and up from the inner surface of the safety ring (30A) andengage a flange on the bottle (60A) to hold the cap assembly on a bottle(60A).

The connector strip (50A) is connected detachably to the punch assembly(20A) and has an upper edge, an inner surface, a connector, multipleteeth (51A), a crack and a pull tab. The connector is formed on theupper edge of the connector strip (50A), is connected to the lower edgeof the drive cap (24A) and is torn to remove the connector strip (60A)and allow the drive cap (24A) to be removed. The teeth (51A) are formedon and protrude in from the inner surface of the connector strip (50A)and engage a notch between the annular lip (144) on the drive tube (14A)and the shoulder on the cap connector. The crack is defined in theconnector strip (50A). The pull tab is mounted near the crack toseparate the connector strip (50A) from the cap connector. Though theconventional cap assembly is capable of holding steeping materials (70A)and performing cold steeping, safety of the drinks and sealability ofthe steeping materials (70A) still need to be improved and enhanced.

To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a capassembly for cold steeping drinks to mitigate or obviate theaforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a capassembly for cold steeping drinks that is mounted on a bottle, holdssteeping materials and improves sealability and safety of the drinks.

A cap assembly in accordance with the present invention for coldsteeping drinks comprises a body, a punch assembly, a safety ring and aconnector strip.

The body has a cap connector, a primary tube, a cover, a drive tube anda chamber. The cap connector comprises a sidewall and a shoulder. Thesidewall has an upper edge, a lower edge, an inner surface and an innerthread formed on the inner surface. The shoulder is formed on andprotrudes in from the upper edge of the sidewall and has an outersurface and an inner surface. The primary tube is formed on andprotrudes coaxially down from the inner surface of the of the shoulderand has an inner surface, an outer surface, a distal end and at leastone annular seal formed on the inner surface of the primary tube. Thecover is attached to the distal end of the primary tube. The drive tubeis formed on and protrudes coaxially up from the outer surface of theshoulder and has an inner surface, an outer surface, a top edge,multiple outer pawl teeth and multiple top pawl teeth. The outer pawlteeth are formed between the top surface of the shoulder and the outersurface of the drive tube. The top pawl teeth are formed on the top edgeof the drive tube. The chamber is defined in the primary tube and thedrive tube.

The punch assembly is mounted on the body and comprises a drive cap, apunch tube and multiple upper teeth. The drive cap is mounted slidablyon the drive tube and comprises a top and a sidewall. The top iscircular and has a bottom surface and an outer edge. The sidewall isformed on and protrudes down from the outer edge of the top of the drivecap and has a lower edge and an inner surface. The punch tube is formedcoaxially on and protrudes down from the bottom surface of the top wall,is mounted slidably in the drive tube and the primary tube, is longerthan the body and has an outer surface and a distal end. The outersurface presses against the at least one annular seal in the primarytube. The distal end selectively extends through the distal end of theprimary tube to separate the cover from the distal end of the primarytube. The upper teeth are formed on the bottom surface of the top of thedrive cap between the outer surface of the punch tube and the innersurface of the sidewall of the drive cap and correspond to the top pawlteeth on the drive tube.

The safety ring is connected to the cap connector, is removable and hasan upper edge, an inner surface, multiple connectors and a locking ring.The connectors are tearable, are formed on the upper edge of the safetyring and are connected to the lower edge of the sidewall of the capconnector. The locking ring is formed on the inner surface of the safetyring.

The connector strip is connected detachably to the punch assembly andhas an upper edge, an inner surface, multiple connectors, multiple innerpawl teeth, a crack and a pull tab. The connectors are formed on theupper edge of the connector strip, are connected to the lower edge ofthe sidewall of the drive cap. The inner pawl teeth are formed on andprotrude in from the inner surface of the connector strip and engage theouter pawl teeth on the drive tube. The crack is defined in theconnector strip. The pull tab is mounted near the crack to separate theconnector strip from the cap connector.

Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention willbecome more apparent from the following detailed description when takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cap assembly in accordance with thepresent invention for cold steeping drinks;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view in partial section of the capassembly in FIG. 1 on a bottle;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of the cap assembly in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an operational cross-sectional view of the cap assembly inFIG. 1 with steeping materials released into the bottle;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view in partial section of aconventional cap assembly in accordance with the prior art; and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional side view of the conventional cap assemblyin FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, a cap assembly in accordance withthe present invention for cold steeping drinks is mounted on a mouth(61) of a bottle (60) having a top edge, an outer thread and a flange(62) and comprises a body (10), a punch assembly (20), a safety ring(30) and a connector strip (50).

The body (10) is mounted on the bottle mouth (61) and has a capconnector (11), a primary tube (12), a cover (16), a drive tube (14) anda chamber (13).

The cap connector (11) screws onto the outer thread of the mouth (61)and comprises a sidewall and a shoulder. The sidewall has an upper edge,a lower edge, an inner surface and an inner thread. The inner thread isformed on the inner surface of the sidewall and screws onto the outerthread of the mouth (61). The shoulder is formed on and protrudes infrom the upper edge of the sidewall and has an outer surface and aninner surface.

The primary tube (12) is formed on and protrudes coaxially down from theinner surface of the shoulder and has an inner surface, an outersurface, a distal end, at least one annular seal (121) and a sealing lip(122). The at least one annular seal (121) is formed on the innersurface of the primary tube (12). The sealing lip (122) is formedbetween the inner surface of the shoulder and the outer surface of theprimary tube (12). When the body (10) is screwed onto the mouth (61),the sealing lip (122) presses against the top edge of the mouth (61) toprevent air or moisture from entering the bottle (60) and improvessealability.

The cover (16) may be plastic, metallic or airtight papery film and isattached to the distal end of the primary tube (12).

The drive tube (14) is formed on and protrudes coaxially up from theouter surface of the shoulder and has an inner surface, an outersurface, a top edge, multiple outer pawl teeth (141), an outer thread(142) and multiple top pawl teeth (143). The outer pawl teeth (141) areformed between the top surface of the shoulder and the outer surface ofthe drive tube (14). The outer thread (142) is formed on the outersurface of the drive tube (14). The top pawl teeth (143) are formed onthe top edge of the drive tube (14).

The chamber (13) is defined in the primary tube (12) and the drive tube(14) to hold steeping materials (70).

The punch assembly (20) is mounted on the body (10) and comprises adrive cap (21), a punch tube (22) and multiple upper teeth (23). Thedrive cap (21) is mounted slidably on the drive tube (14) and comprisesa top and a sidewall. The top is circular and has a bottom surface andan outer edge. The sidewall is formed on and protrudes down from theouter edge of the top and has a lower edge, an inner surface and anoptional inner thread (211). The inner thread (211) is formed on theinner surface of the sidewall and corresponds to and is screwed onto theouter thread (142) of the drive tube (142).

The punch tube (22) is formed coaxially on and protrudes down from thebottom surface of the top, is mounted slidably in the drive tube (14)and the primary tube (12), is longer than the body (10) and has an outersurface and a distal end. The outer surface of the punch tube (22)presses against the at least one annular seal (121) to prevent air ormoisture from entering the chamber (13) in the body (10). With furtherreference to FIG. 4, the distal end of the punch tube (22) may beoblique, selectively extends through the distal end of the primary tube(12) when the drive cap (21) is screwed fully on the body (10) andseparates the cover (16) from the distal end of the primary tube (12) torelease the steeping materials (70) in the chamber (13).

The upper teeth (23) are formed on the bottom surface of the top of thedrive cap (21) between the outer surface of the punch tube (22) and theinner surface of the sidewall of the drive cap (21) and correspond tothe top pawl teeth (143) on the drive tube (14). When the drive cap (21)is screwed fully on the body (10), the upper teeth (23) engage the toppawl teeth (143) to prevent the punch assembly (20) from loosening fromthe body (10) and safety of the cap assembly is improved.

The safety ring (30) is connected to the cap connector (11), engages aflange (62) on a bottle (60), is removable so the cap assembly can beremoved from the bottle (60) and has an upper edge, an inner surface,multiple connectors (31) and a locking ring (32). The connectors (31)are tearable, are formed on the upper edge of the safety ring (31) andare connected to the lower edge of the sidewall of the cap connector(11). The locking ring (32) is formed on the inner surface of the safetyring (30) and abuts the flange (62) on the mouth (61) of the bottle (60)when the body (10) is loosened from the bottle mouth (61) to prevent thesafety ring (30) from moving with the body (10). Consequently, theconnectors (31) are torn, and the safety ring (30) remains around themouth (61) of the bottle (60) to indicate that the body (10) has beenloosed from the mouth (61) of the bottle (60).

The connector strip (50) is connected detachably to the punch assembly(20) and has an upper edge, an inner surface, multiple connectors (52),multiple inner pawl teeth (51), a crack and a pull tab (53). Theconnectors (52) are formed on the upper edge of the connector strip(50), are connected to the lower edge of the sidewall of the drive cap(21) and are torn to remove the connector strip (50) and allow the drivecap (24) to be removed. The inner pawl teeth (51) are formed on andprotrude in from the inner surface of the connector strip (50) andengage the outer pawl teeth (141) on the drive tube (14) to keep thepunch assembly (20) from loosening from the body (10). The crack isdefined in the connector strip (50). The pull tab (53) is mounted nearthe crack to separate the connector strip (50) from the cap connector(11). To release the steeping materials, the pull tab (53) is pulled totear the connectors (52) on the connector strip (50) and to remove theconnector strip (50) from the punch assembly (20) and allow the punchassembly to be turned.

Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the presentinvention have been set forth in the foregoing description, togetherwith details of the structure and function of the invention, thedisclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in detail,especially in matters of shape, size and arrangement of parts within theprinciples of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broadgeneral meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

1. A cap assembly for cold steeping drinks comprising a body having acap connector comprising a sidewall having an upper edge; a lower edge;an inner surface; and an inner thread being formed on the inner surface;and a shoulder being formed on and protruding in from the upper edge ofthe sidewall and having an outer surface; and an inner surface; aprimary tube being formed on and protruding coaxially down from theinner surface of the of the shoulder and having an inner surface; anouter surface; a distal end; and at least one annular seal being formedon the inner surface of the primary tube; a cover being attached to thedistal end of the primary tube; a drive tube being formed on andprotruding coaxially up from the outer surface of the shoulder andhaving an inner surface; an outer surface; a top edge; multiple outerpawl teeth being formed between the top surface of the shoulder and theouter surface of the drive tube; and multiple top pawl teeth beingformed on the top edge of the drive tube; and a chamber being defined inthe primary tube and the drive tube; a punch assembly being mounted onthe body and comprising a drive cap being mounted slidably on the drivetube and comprising a top being circular and having a bottom surface;and an outer edge; and a sidewall being formed on and protruding downfrom the outer edge of the top of the drive cap and having a lower edge;and an inner surface; a punch tube being formed coaxially on andprotruding down from the bottom surface of the top wall, being mountedslidably in the drive tube and the primary tube, being longer than thebody and having an outer surface pressing against the at least oneannular seal in the primary tube; and a distal end selectively extendingthrough the distal end of the primary tube to separate the cover fromthe distal end of the primary tube; and multiple upper teeth beingformed on the bottom surface of the top of the drive cap between theouter surface of the punch tube and the inner surface of the sidewall ofthe drive cap and corresponding to the top pawl teeth on the drive tube;a safety ring being connected to the cap connector, being removable andhaving an upper edge; an inner surface; multiple connectors beingtearable, being formed on the upper edge of the safety ring and beingconnected to the lower edge of the sidewall of the cap connector; and alocking ring being formed on the inner surface of the safety ring; and aconnector strip being connected detachably to the punch assembly andhaving an upper edge; an inner surface; multiple connectors being formedon the upper edge of the connector strip, being connected to the loweredge of the side wall of the drive cap; multiple inner pawl teeth beingformed on and protruding in from the inner surface of the connectorstrip and engaging the outer pawl teeth on the drive tube; a crack beingdefined in the connector strip; and a pull tab being mounted near thecrack.
 2. The cap assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the primarytube further has a sealing lip formed between the bottom surface of theshoulder of the cap connector and the outer surface of the primary tube.3. The cap assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the drive tubefurther has an outer thread formed on the outer surface of the drivetube; and the side wall of the drive cap further has an inner threadbeing formed on the inner surface of the side wall and beingcorresponding to and screwed onto the outer thread of the drive tube. 4.The cap assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the distal end of thepunch tube is oblique.
 5. The cap assembly as claimed in claim 2,wherein the drive tube further has an outer thread formed on the outersurface of the drive tube; and the sidewall of the drive cap further hasan inner thread formed on the inner surface of the sidewall andcorresponding to and screwed onto the outer thread of the drive tube. 6.The cap assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein the distal end of thepunch tube is oblique.
 7. The cap assembly as claimed in claim 5,wherein the distal end of the punch tube is oblique.